CANADIAN NETS TO BID ON NAGANO NEXT WEEK

The IOC will entertain bids for the Canadian broadcast
rights to the '98 Nagano Games next week. CTV paid C$12M for the
'94 Lillehammer Games, but was beaten out for Atlanta by CBC's
C$30M bid. In Toronto, Ron Longley notes, "In Nagano bidding,
CTV may not have to go as high. With massive layoffs pending at
[CBC], it's hard to imagine CBC being able to justify breaking
the bank for a property three years down the road. But don't
count on it." CTV VP of Sports Doug Beeforth: "There is only so
much money out there in advertising dollars. If CBC does what it
did in Atlanta, we don't have a chance" (TORONTO SUN, 5/26).